Posted by simon levane on February 17, 2006, at 10:47:52
In reply to Please be civil » lifetime, posted by gardenergirl on February 16, 2006, at 23:34:51
Certainly it is useful to research meds and so on. When my father had a heart attack and the cardiologist frightened him about getting a angiogram, and then basically insisted on "letting him decide what was best for him", I didn't even have the opportunity to present the overall situation to my father. I then researched the actual risk factors, and found a recent paper that clearly stated that the angiogram/angioplasty route was far better choice than doing nothing. When my father then expressed his concerns to me, I could tell him without any sense of worry that I was perhaps misinforming him.. He had the procedure and it saved his life. In my daughter's case, the pharmacist checked with the doctor about the dose, and the doctor verified this, so I had this elation that the drug was OK and I never thought I needed to second-guess two different doctors - a mental health specialist and my trusted family doctor... NEITHER OF THEM TOLD US OF THE RISK!!!!!!!
Now I would never take any medicine or give any medicine to a family member without asking about risks.. but in my daughter's case, I just would never have imagined a doctor to give her a medicine with risk and not tell us.. but that is what they did....
I am well educated and have a background in biology, and I trusted my family doctor.. but what about people who are not so well educated, and who need to trust their doctors.. That is why doctors are doctors.. otherwise, we should just go and ask for clinical tests and heal ourselves. It is no less incumbent on a doctor prescribing a drug than on a surgeon who needs to inform his patient fully, before they submit to surgery...... but it is also clear that we cannot trust the medical profession as we thought we could...
Today I spoke to someone who teaches Medical Ethics and his response to the issue of accountability of prescribing drugs was that the pharmacist should be the person accountable for risks as the dispenser. I disagreed with him and because he is actually teaching medical students, I told him that it is the doctor who writes the prescription is ultimately responsible, not the pharmacist. The role of the pharmacist is to control drugs and to ensure that there is no accidental prescription of drugs that may have combined reactions. Some larger pharmacy groups provide literature with the medicine for the patient or family to read. I did not read this insert as I felt so re-assured by the fact that the pharmacist had delayed the prescription to check with the doctor. I later learned that this was totally cursory and the doctor just said "yes" without even knowing of the risk himself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There is a huge issue here about accountability and care of patients, and of proper sharing of medical records.
I have paid a terrible price for my notion that doctors are trustworthy and care about their patients. I trusted the doctor and I really believed he did care, but he trusted the fact that a specialist had recommended Effexor without bothering to check, and the specialist did a very superficial medical history because she didn't have a proper summary from the GP.
and me.... stupid me... I just could not have imagined that they would prescribe something dangerous to my daughter..
If there ever was an impossibly difficult lesson in life.. there it is..
If I deserve to be crucified, well, I have been in the pain of missing my only child.. my beloved daughter.. troubled as she was, I needed to have her healthy and alive and to find a way to a good life for herself... not be be in the grave at the age of 20...
Simon
> > there maybe a parent intelligent enough to question and read before blindly accepting and proceeding just because a doctor said something.
>
> Please don't post anything that could lead others to feel accused or put down.
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> gg acting as deputy for Dr. Bob
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poster:simon levane
thread:601406
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060212/msgs/610576.html